20. Ta Ha

Ta-Ha.

We have not sent down the Quran to thee to be(an occasion) for thy distress,

But only as an admonition to those who fear(Allah),-

A revelation from Him Who created the earthand the heavens on high.

the Most Gracious is firmly established onthe Throne.

To Him belongs what is in the heavens and onearth, and all between them, and all beneath the soil.

If thou pronounce the word aloud, (it is nomatter): for verily He knoweth what is secret and what is yet morehidden.

Allah. there is no god but He! To Him belongthe most Beautiful Names.

Has the story of Moses reached thee?

Behold, he saw a fire: So he said to hisfamily, “Tarry ye; I perceive a fire; perhaps I can bring you someburning brand therefrom, or find some guidance at the fire.”

But when he came to the fire, he was called:”O Moses!

“Verily I am thy Lord! therefore put off thyshoes: thou art in the sacred valley Tuw�.

“I have chosen thee: listen, then, to theinspiration (given to thee).

“Verily, I am Allah. There is no god but I:So serve thou Me (only), and establish regular prayer for Myremembrance.

“Verily the Hour is coming – I have almostkept it hidden – for every soul to receive its reward by the measureof its Endeavor.

“Therefore let not such as believe nottherein but follow their own lusts, divert thee therefrom, lest thouperish!”..

“And what is that in thy right hand, OMoses?”

He said, “It is my rod: on it I lean; with itI beat down fodder for my flocks; and in it I find other uses.”

(Allah) said, “Throw it, O Moses!”

He threw it, and behold! It was a snake,active in motion.

(Allah) said, “Seize it, and fear not: Weshall return it at once to its former condition”..

“Now draw thy hand close to thy side: Itshall come forth white (and shining), without harm (or stain),- asanother Sign,-

“In order that We may show thee (two) of OurGreater Signs.

“Go thou to Pharaoh, for he has indeedtransgressed all bounds.”

(Moses) said: “O my Lord! expand me mybreast;

“Ease my task for me;

“And remove the impediment from my speech,

“So they may understand what I say:

“And give me a Minister from my family,

“Aaron, my brother;

“Add to my strength through him,

“And make him share my task:

“That we may celebrate Thy praise withoutstint,

“And remember Thee without stint:

“For Thou art over seeing us.”

(Allah) said: “Granted is thy prayer, OMoses!”

“And indeed We conferred a favor on theeanother time (before).

“Behold! We sent to thy mother, byinspiration, the message:

” ‘Throw (the child) into the chest, andthrow (the chest) into the river: the river will cast him up on thebank, and he will be taken up by one who is an enemy to Me and anenemy to him’: But I endued thee with love from Me: and (this) inorder that thou mayest be reared under Mine eye.

“Behold! thy sister goeth forth and saith,’Shall I show you one who will nurse and rear the (child)?’ So Webrought thee back to thy mother, that her eye might be cooled andshe should not grieve. Then thou didst slay a man, but We saved theefrom trouble, and We tried thee in various ways. Then didst thoutarry a number of years with the people of Midian. Then didst thoucome hither as ordained, O Moses!

“And I have prepared thee for Myself (forservice)”…

“Go, thou and thy brother, with My Signs, andslacken not, either of you, in keeping Me in remembrance.

“Go, both of you, to Pharaoh, for he hasindeed transgressed all bounds;

“But speak to him mildly; perchance he maytake warning or fear (Allah).”

They (Moses and Aaron) said: “Our Lord! Wefear lest he hasten with insolence against us, or lest he transgressall bounds.”

He said: “Fear not: for I am with you: I hearand see (everything).

“So go ye both to him, and say, ‘Verily weare messengers sent by thy Lord: Send forth, therefore, the Childrenof Israel with us, and afflict them not: with a Sign, indeed, havewe come from thy Lord! and peace to all who follow guidance!

” ‘Verily it has been revealed to us that theChastisement (awaits) those who reject and turn away.’ “

(When this message was delivered), (Pharaoh)said: “Who, then, O Moses, is the Lord of you two?”

He said: “Our Lord is He Who gave to each(created) thing its form, then gave (it) guidance.”

(Pharaoh) said: “What then is the conditionof previous generations?”

He replied: “The knowledge of that is with myLord, duly recorded: my Lord never errs, nor forgets,-

“He Who has, made for you the earth like acarpet spread out; has enabled you to go about therein by roads (andchannels); and has sent down water from the sky.” With it have Weproduced diverse pairs of plants each separate from the others.

Eat (for yourselves) and pasture your cattle:verily, in this are Signs for men endued with understanding.

From the (earth) did We create you, and intoit shall We return you, and from it shall We bring you out onceagain.

And We showed Pharaoh all Our Signs, but hedid reject and refuse.

He said: “Hast thou come to drive us out ofour land with thy magic, O Moses?

“But we can surely produce magic to matchthine! So make a tryst between us and thee, which we shall not failto keep – neither we nor thou – in a place where both shall haveeven chances.”

Moses said: “Your tryst is the Day of theFestival, and let the people be assembled when the sun is well up.”

So Pharaoh withdrew: He concerted his plan,and then came (back).

Moses said to them: “Woe to you! Forge not yea lie against Allah, lest He destroy you (at once) utterly bychastisement: the forger must suffer failure!”

So they disputed, one with another, overtheir affair, but they kept their talk secret.

They said: “These two are certainly (expert)magicians: their object is to drive you out from your land withtheir magic, and to do away with your most cherished way.

“Therefore concert your plan, and thenassemble in (serried) ranks. He wins (all along) today who gains theupper hand.”

They said: “O Moses! whether wilt thou thatthou throw (first) or that we be the first to throw?”

He said, “Nay, throw ye first!” Then beholdtheir ropes and their rods-so it seemed to him on account of theirmagic – began to be in lively motion!

So Moses conceived in his mind a (sort of)fear.

We said: “Fear not! for thou hast indeed theupper hand:

“Throw that which is in thy right hand.Quickly will it swallow up that which they have faked: what theyhave faked is but a magician’s trick: and the magician succeeds not,(no matter) where he goes.”

So the magicians were thrown down toprostration: they said, “We believe in the Lord of Aaron and Moses”.

(Pharaoh) said: “Believe ye in Him before Igive you permission? Surely this must be your leader, who has taughtyou magic! be sure I will cut off your hands and feet on oppositesides, and I will have you crucified on trunks of palm-trees: soshall ye know for certain, which of us can give the more severe andthe more lasting punishment!”

They said: “Never shall we prefer thee towhat has come to us of the Clear Signs, Him Who created us! Sodecree whatever thou desirest to decree: for thou canst only decree(touching) the life of this world.

“For us, we have believed in our Lord: may Heforgive us our faults, and the magic to which thou didst compel us:for Allah is Best and Most Abiding.”

Verily he who comes to his Lord as a sinner(at Judgment),- for him is Hell: therein shall he neither die norlive.

But such as come to Him as Believers who haveworked righteous deeds,- for them are ranks exalted,-

Gardens of Eternity, beneath which flowrivers: they will dwell therein for aye: such is the reward of thosewho purify themselves (from evil).

We sent an inspiration to Moses: “Travel bynight with My servants, and strike a dry path for them through thesea, without fear of being overtaken (by Pharaoh) and without (anyother) fear.”

Then Pharaoh pursued them with his forces,but the waters completely overwhelmed them and covered them up.

Pharaoh led his people astray instead ofleading them aright.

O ye Children of Israel! We delivered youfrom your enemy, and We made a Covenant with you on the right sideof Mount (Sinai), and We sent down to you Manna and quails:

(Saying): “Eat of the good things We haveprovided for your sustenance, but commit no excess therein, lest MyWrath should descend on you: and those on whom descends My Wrath doperish indeed!

“But, without doubt, I am (also) He thatforgives again and again, to those who repent, believe, and doright, who,- in fine, are on true guidance.”

(When Moses was up on the Mount, Allah said:)”What made thee hasten in advance of thy people, O Moses?”

He replied: “Behold, they are close on myfootsteps: I hastened to Thee, O my Lord, to please Thee.”

(Allah) said: “We have tested thy people inthy absence: the S�mir� has led them astray.”

So Moses returned to his people in a state ofanger and sorrow. He said: “O my people! did not your Lord make ahandsome promise to you? Did then the promise seem to you long (incoming)? Or did ye desire that Wrath should descend from your Lordon you, and so ye broke your promise to me?”

They said: “We broke not the promise to thee,as far as lay in our power: but we were made to carry the weight ofthe ornaments of the (whole) people, and we threw them (into thefire), and that was what the S�mir� suggested.

“Then he brought out (of the fire) before the(people) the image of a calf: It seemed to low: so they said: ‘Thisis your god, and the god of Moses, but (Moses) has forgotten!’ “

Could they not see that it could not returnthem a word (for answer), and that it had no power either to harmthem or to do them good?

Aaron had already, before this said to them:”O my people! ye are being tested in this: for verily your Lord is(Allah) Most Gracious; so follow me and obey my command.”

They had said: “We will not cease to worshipit, we will devote ourselves to it until Moses returns to us.”

(Moses) said: “O Aaron! What kept thee back,when thou sawest them going wrong,

“From following me? Didst thou then disobeymy order?”

(Aaron) replied: “O son of my mother! Seize(me) not by my beard nor by (the hair of) my head! Truly I fearedlest thou shouldst say, ‘Thou has caused a division among theChildren of Israel, and thou didst not observe my word!’ “

(Moses) said: “What then is thy case, OS�mir�?”

He replied: “I saw what they saw not: so Itook a handful (of dust) from the footprint of the Messenger, andthrew it (into the calf): thus did my soul suggest to me.”

(Moses) said: “Get thee gone! but thy(punishment) in this life will be that thou wilt say, ‘Touch menot’; and moreover (for a future penalty) thou hast a promise thatwill not fail. Now look at thy god, of whom thou hast become adevoted worshipper: we will certainly burn it in a blazing fire andscatter it broadcast in the sea!”

But the God of you all is Allah. there is nogod but He: all things He comprehends in His knowledge.

Thus do We relate to thee some stories ofwhat happened before: for We have sent thee a reminder from Us.

If any do turn away therefrom, verily theywill bear a burden on the Day of Judgment;

They will abide in this (state): and grievouswill the burden be to them on that Day,-

The Day when the Trumpet will be sounded:that Day, We shall gather the sinful, blear-eyed (with terror).

In whispers will they consult each other:”Yet tarried not longer than ten (Days);”

We know best what they will say, when thebest of them in judgment will say: “Ye tarried not longer than aday!”

They ask thee concerning the Mountains: say,”My Lord will uproot them and scatter them as dust;

“He will leave them as plains smooth andlevel;

“Nothing crooked or curved wilt thou see intheir place.”

On that Day will they follow the Caller(straight): no crookedness (in) him: all the voices will be hushedto the Most Gracious: so that thou hearest not but murmuring.

On that Day shall no intercession availexcept for those for whom permission has been granted by the MostGracious and whose word is acceptable to Him.

He knows what is before or after or behindthem: but they shall comprehend Him not.

(All) faces shall be humbled before theLiving, the Self-Subsisting, Eternal: hopeless indeed will be theman that carries iniquity (on his back).

But he who works deeds of righteousness, andhas faith, will have no fear of harm nor of any curtailment (of whatis his due).

Thus have We sent this down – an Arabic Quran- and explained therein in detail some of the warnings, in orderthat they may fear Allah, or that it may cause their remembrance (ofHim).

High above all is Allah, the King, the Truth!Be not in haste with the Quran before its revelation to thee iscompleted, but say, “O my Lord! Increase me in knowledge.”

We had already, beforehand, taken thecovenant of Adam, but he forgot: and We found on his part no firmresolve.

When We said to the angels, “Prostrateyourselves to Adam”, they prostrated themselves, but not Iblis: herefused.

Then We said: “O Adam! Verily, this is anenemy to thee and thy wife: so let him not get you both out of theGarden, so that thou art landed in misery.

“There is therein (enough provision) for theenot to go hungry nor to go naked,

“Nor to suffer from thirst, nor from thesun’s heat.”

But Satan whispered evil to him: he said, “OAdam! shall I lead thee to the Tree of Eternity and to a kingdomthat never decays?”

In the result, they both ate of the tree, andso their nakedness appeared to them: they began to sew together, fortheir covering, leaves from the Garden: thus did Adam disobey hisLord, and fell into error.

But his Lord chose him (for His Grace): Heturned to him, and gave him Guidance.

He said: “Get ye down, both of you,- alltogether, from the Garden, with enmity one to another: but if, as issure, there comes to you Guidance from Me, whosoever follows MyGuidance, will not lose his way, nor fall into misery.

“But whosoever turns away from My Message,verily for him is a life narrowed down, and We shall raise him upblind on the Day of Judgment.”

He will say: “O my Lord! Why hast Thou raisedme up blind, while I had sight (before)?”

(Allah) will say: “Thus didst Thou, when OurSigns came unto thee, forgot them: so wilt thou, this day, beforgotten.”

And thus do We recompense him whotransgresses beyond bounds and believes not in the Sings of hisLord: and the Chastisement of the Hereafter is far more grievous andmore enduring.

Is it not a guidance to such men (to call tomind) how many generations before them We destroyed, in whose hauntsthey (now) move? Verily, in this are Signs for men endued withunderstanding.

Had it not been for a Word that went forthbefore from thy Lord, (their punishment) must necessarily have come;but there is a Term appointed (for respite).

Therefore be patient with what they say, andcelebrate (constantly) the praises of thy Lord, before the rising ofthe sun, and before its setting; yea, celebrate them for part of thehours of the night, and at the sides of the day: that thou may bepleased.

Nor strain thine eyes in longing for thethings We have given for enjoyment to parties of them, the splendorof the life of this world, through which We test them: but theprovision of thy Lord is better and more enduring.

Enjoin prayer on thy people, and be constanttherein. We ask thee not to provide sustenance: We provide it forthee. But the (fruit of) the Hereafter is for Righteousness.

They say: “Why does he not bring us a Signfrom his Lord?” Has not a Clear Sign come to them of all that was inthe former Books of revelation?

Had We destroyed them with punishment beforethis, they would have said: “Our Lord! If only Thou hadst sent us amessenger, we should certainly have followed Thy Signs before wewere humbled and put to shame.”

Say: “Each one (of us) is waiting: wait ye,therefore, and soon shall ye know who it is that is on the straightand even way, and who it is that has received Guidance.”